At the Pleasure of the President

by Shayla Black

  “Hopefully they’re working it out.” He wanted to go down and visit them, but he’d been especially busy…with Elizabeth. He hoped Mad found himself similarly occupied.

  Roman winced. “Let’s just say Mad is not sleeping in the bed. I went down there and he’s apparently all about the couch for now. But I wasn’t referring to their relationship. Mad and Sara have been working. They’ve found some things you should know about.”

  He didn’t like the sound of that. After all, Mad and Sara had been poring over Joy’s records. Gus had wanted the job, but she and Holland had been far too close to Joy. They’d been sorority sisters and friends. The idea that Joy had been anything less than the perfect political wife she’d seemed might crush Gus. Sara had never been close to Joy, and Joy had actively hated Mad, so they were the perfect duo to look at her records with impersonal eyes.

  “What have they discovered?” Zack wasn’t sure he wanted to know.

  “We’re having them look through all of the evidence we collected in England, along with Joy’s calendars. So far, they haven’t found anything new. If Joy visited your mother clandestinely, she somehow managed it without you knowing.”

  “How would she do that?” It wasn’t as if Joy could have hopped in the car for a quick trip to England.

  “She did take a couple of official trips to London. Would it have been that hard to sneak up north to the facility where your mother was being treated?”

  “First, don’t use that word. They didn’t treat her. They held her captive for my father so she couldn’t talk and screw up my political career. It was a glorified prison for Constance.” Zack found it hard to call her mom now. She’d never really been any sort of normal mother to him. Second, he didn’t even know if she was his biological mother. Still, he hated how his father had all but discarded her in her later years.

  Roman nodded but continued. “Point taken.”

  “And we’re also speculating. We don’t know if Joy’s records are accurate. We know there’s a chance the facility’s have been tampered with.”

  But if Roman’s supposition was right, Zack’s sexless marriage had made it easy for Joy to be dishonest with him. He would never have had any reason to suspect that his wife wasn’t precisely where she claimed she’d be. They had rarely called each other without a specific reason. Still, why would Joy have secretly visited his mother? And could she really have been the mysterious “family member” to check Constance out the night she’d died. It seemed unfathomable.

  “What do you think Joy was guilty of?”

  Roman glanced away, his eyes full of an old shame. “I don’t know. Do you think I even want to accuse her of any wrongdoing? I loved Joy.” He put a hand up, stopping the denial Zack was about to express. “No, I know now that I was always meant to be with Gus, and marrying Joy would have been a horrible mistake, but at the time I thought I loved her.”

  “Have you ever considered that you’ve spent your entire life backing me up?”

  “What does that mean?”

  “It means I wonder if deep down you didn’t see how much I wanted Elizabeth, how miserable I was in that marriage to Joy, and you offered me a way out.” He’d thought about it a lot after finding out the truth of Joy’s death, contemplated that time over and over again in his head. Roman was ruthless, but so loyal he had no idea how he would have survived this without him.

  “It felt right at the time.” Roman’s voice was softer than normal. “Strangely, nothing like what I feel with Gus. When I thought about having a life with Joy, I felt content.”

  “And with Gus?”

  “I feel alive.”

  That was how he felt with Elizabeth. He felt fire and passion and life. He felt the weight of all his responsibilities float away because she wasn’t a responsibility. She was a necessity. She was air in his lungs, blood in his veins. “Good. You deserve that. Now tell me the rest of it because I can see by the look in your eyes that you haven’t laid the worst on me yet.”

  “You’re the only person in the world who can read me,” Roman admitted. “Well, Gus can for the most part, but she also puts the worst possible spin on every expression I have.”

  “Tell me.”

  Roman sighed. “One of the things Sara and Mad have uncovered while going through Joy’s old notebooks is that she already had chosen her initiative and she’d found a group she wanted to work with.”

  Fuck. “I think I know, but tell me. We never discussed what her initiatives would be. She told me it would be premature and bad luck.”

  “She’d already decided. She was going to focus on women and girls’ education in America and around the world.”

  Every single rock they turned over uncovered another shitty secret. “Are you telling me she’d planned to partner with Tavia Gordon’s organization, the one that was a front for a Russian syndicate?”

  “Yes. According to her planners she’d had several meetings with Tavia. And she wasn’t the only one.”

  Another nail in the coffin. “Who else?”

  “Liz went with her to at least one of those meetings, one of the early ones.”

  Zack tensed in denial. “Elizabeth went to a lot of meetings with Joy. She was running press for the campaign. If she thought Joy needed backup, she absolutely would have gone with her.”

  “But she hasn’t mentioned this get-together to us.”

  “Do you remember every single person you ever met with in the last five years?”

  “Yes.”

  Roman was a bastard. “Well, I don’t. This proves nothing except that Elizabeth did her job.”

  “Don’t blame me,” Roman said, his jaw tight. “I hate telling you these things. I’m not the fucking grim reaper everyone thinks I am, but I can’t be Suzy Sunshine. You need me to tell you the hard truths, and I’m not done with them yet. Did you know Liz was found in the Treaty Room by herself the day we brought her to Camp David?”

  The Treaty Room was his private retreat. Some people called it the Man Cave, but it was where he did the majority of his work, especially if he put in hours on nights and weekends. Why would she be in there? There was a simple way to fix the problem. He would simply ask her.

  When he stood, Roman got to his feet and blocked Zack’s path. “You can’t go to her with this, not unless you want to sit her down and truly interrogate her. This is not something you casually mention or, if she’s guilty, she’ll know we’re onto her.”

  “How do you know she won’t tell me the truth so we can be done with all this suspicion and bullshit?”

  Roman shook his head. “It can’t work that way. This is not merely about you, Zack. I hate to say it, but you don’t get the freedom the average citizen has. When you make this decision, you’re not making it as Zack Hayes. You’re the president of the United States and you took an oath to serve the needs of the people first. This is precisely why I thought getting involved with Liz was a bad idea. When it comes to finding the truth, you can’t treat her like your girlfriend.”

  Zack hated this—all of it. But Roman’s questions still circled in his brain. Why would Elizabeth have been in his unofficial office? What would make her go there in the middle of the day?

  “Where was my father at the time?”

  Roman sighed. “Gus said she’d heard he’d wandered in there, but she didn’t actually see him.”

  Zack smiled. “Good. Now I have one person I can ask.”

  Chapter Nine

  “My phone has been blowing up all day about this Capitol Scandals article.” Vanessa looked frazzled as Liz walked into the press office. She turned her screen Liz’s way. “Have you seen this? It’s ridiculous. Tell me we’re suing the hell out of whoever runs this trashy rag.”

  So the story was already making the rounds. Liz had known it wouldn’t stay a blip for long.

  She headed for her office. “We’re not suing anyone. I’ll have a statement for the press in an hour or so.”

  “Do you know what they’re saying?”
Vanessa managed to make her shocked expression somehow look pouty.

  “I’ve read the article.” She didn’t mention that she’d helped Lara write it.

  “They’re accusing the First Lady of having an affair.”

  “She was never the First Lady.” Why had that come out sounding so defensive?

  Vanessa reared back. In fact, she wasn’t the only one who seemed surprised. Most of the office had turned their attention to the byplay between her and Vanessa. “She would have been. And she would have been a great First Lady. This article drags her through the mud.”

  “I’ll have a discussion with the chief of staff about it and we’ll proceed from there.” She glanced around at the room, bringing them all into the conversation. “For now, if anyone asks, we don’t respond to tabloid reporting. I know that we’ll have to deal with it when the mainstream media get hold of the story, but until then, that’s our line. No leaks, people.”

  She turned to head toward her office. Vanessa followed.

  “And what about the other story that’s going to break at some point?” Vanessa asked.

  Liz had a million stories to worry about. “Which one?”

  “The one where the president of the United States is sleeping with his press secretary.” The brunette thrust a hand on her hip, her stare full of accusation. “Did you think you could keep that secret for long?”

  With the way Zack was on top of her most of the time? No. “If that speculation hits the public, the president and I will decide how to handle it.”

  “You know, I’m shocked. Truly, I am. I knew you were close to him, but I didn’t think you would behave this unprofessionally. You were his wife’s friend.”

  “Joy Hayes has been gone for three years. The president is a single man, and as you know he’s been on multiple dates with high-profile women recently. I don’t appreciate your speculation about my relationship with him. Frankly, it’s unprofessional for you to gossip in the office, especially to me. I don’t want to hear another word about this. If that’s a problem for you, Vanessa, the door is right there.”

  The younger woman’s eyes widened. “I-I didn’t mean it like that. I just…I heard the rumors. I thought you’d want to know because I looked up to you.”

  “Whatever relationship I have with the president is private and I won’t discuss it. Nor do I want anyone else doing so in the office. Are we clear?”

  “Yes.” Vanessa had turned a nice shade of red. She gestured toward Liz’s office. “You’ve got a visitor. He was very agitated, so I didn’t want to leave him out here to disrupt everyone. He’s in your office.”

  Liz raised a brow. “You let someone in my private office without my permission?”

  That question seemed to stump her. “I-I thought… Well, we’re supposed to squash rumors not feed into them, and that man could cause all sorts of rumors. You’ll see what I mean. I’ll be out here if you need me.”

  As Vanessa left, Liz fought the urge to charge after the woman and fire her, but she gritted her teeth, determined to get through the day without making rash, angry decisions. Besides, Vanessa had admired Joy, who had viewed herself as a mentor to the younger woman.

  In fact, when she and Zack rolled out their relationship to the public, Liz knew she’d have to remember that, according to all polls, the American people had had a very favorable opinion of Joy. They had genuinely been horrified at her loss and mourned. She also couldn’t forget that, besides being incredibly handsome, Zack was a beloved figure. No matter what happened, the press would always be fascinated with him. So once they went public, some women would view her as a social climber or worse. She would have to handle the accusations and the slurs with grace and aplomb.

  Liz opened the door, ready to deal with whatever pesky reporter had an ax to grind. Instead, she stopped short at the sight of the man—not a reporter at all—standing by her desk.

  Joy’s father, Paul Harding, occupied her office, his hands shoved in the pockets of his slacks and wearing an angry glower. He was in his late sixties, still fit from years of training. His hair had gone a stark silver, which he kept neatly trimmed. His pale eyes reminded Liz so much of his daughter’s.

  He came to visit old Frank frequently. Joy’s father and Zack’s father had been friends forever; it was one reason their children had married. But today, Liz rued that Paul had been basically given open access to the White House because she knew exactly what story had brought him here.

  “Hello, Paul.”

  “What the hell is going on, Liz? I got a call from a reporter wanting to know if my daughter cheated on her husband. Where is the White House’s official response to this tripe? What is Zachary doing to quell it?”

  Liz rounded her desk and sat with a sigh. “Why don’t you have a seat, Paul?”

  “I don’t want a seat. I want to know why some tabloid is telling lies about my daughter, and you’re not doing a damn thing about it. Joy was a good girl. She would never have cheated on Zack, and especially not with someone like Roman Calder.”

  “No one is saying Joy actually cheated on Zack. I believe what the article implies is that Joy and Roman were close emotionally.”

  Paul’s mouth flattened in an angry line. “This trashy online tabloid said she planned to leave Zack if he lost the election.”

  “They were only married because of the election.” It was time to get real with the man. Clearly, he wanted to play the ignorant, but she knew the truth. She’d bet he did too. “Their marriage wasn’t a love match, Paul. You, Frank, and the other advisors carefully orchestrated it.”

  Paul Harding paced across her office. “Just because Joy married smart doesn’t mean she didn’t care about Zack. She was a good wife.”

  “No one is saying she wasn’t.” Though it would come up. Once social media ran with the story, Joy’s reputation might get savaged, but Liz knew that treatment was waiting for her, too.

  He braced his hands on the chair in front of her desk. “I want to talk to Zack.”

  “I’ll call him and see if I can arrange a meeting.”

  “Why aren’t you out there fighting this, Liz?” Paul’s anger dissipated, leaving genuine confusion in its wake. “Why haven’t you gone after this shit peddler? You would do it in a heartbeat if it was Zack’s reputation on the line.”

  She couldn’t tell the man the truth, that she’d helped to float the narrative so Zack could begin to defray a Russian blackmailer’s threats. But she had to be as straight as possible with Paul because the story wasn’t dying anytime soon. In fact, given their plans, it would likely get worse. “I’m not going after them because the story is true. We’ve recently found evidence that Joy and Roman planned to start dating after her divorce from Zack. She and Zack had discussed the situation and agreed that, if he lost the election, they would go their separate ways.”

  “No. I’ve never heard a word about this. Even if it’s true, I don’t care. She wouldn’t have gone through with it. The pressure of the campaign simply got to her. You have to release a statement denying these allegations.”

  “Paul, the tabloid has copies of the electronic messages Joy and Roman sent each other. She was involved in an emotional affair with him. I think we can handle this delicate situation in a way that everyone will understand and forgive.” In some ways, it might make Zack, Joy, and especially Roman, who wasn’t particularly liked by the press, seem more human. “I’m going to handle this with kid gloves, I promise you. No one wants Joy to look like the bad guy.”

  His eyes narrowed. “But you’ll have no problem painting her in that light if it helps Zack. You’ll just throw my daughter to the sharks and not look back.”

  “I have no intention of allowing that to happen. Joy was loved by many.”

  “Tell me something. Who was Zack involved with? Because I don’t believe for an instant Joy would have done this if she’d been getting the attention she needed and deserved from her husband. So I have to wonder if Zack wasn’t having a…what did you
call it? Emotional affair with another woman, probably someone close to him. Someone he saw every day. Who could that be?” He stroked his chin as if thinking hard. “Why isn’t the media discussing that?”

  Liz knew exactly what Paul was insinuating, but she and Zack had kept everything completely above board. Admittedly, they’d shared an attraction, but it had been completely unspoken until that lunch in Memphis before tragedy struck. Certainly they’d never sent one another emails or notes like Joy and Roman had clandestinely.

  “The media isn’t covering it because it didn’t happen. Any other conversation you’d like to have on this subject should probably be between you and Zack.” When it came to family matters, she couldn’t speak for Zack. Paul was his former father-in-law, so Zack was best suited to handle the man and the delicate situation. “I know his schedule for this afternoon is tight. I can see if he has any time next week.”

  “By then it will be too late, won’t it?” He backed up, shaking his head. “I can see what’s happening now. He’s planning on marrying again and he knows how beloved Joy was. If he can make her look bad, then people will sympathize with him and accept his new wife. I have theories of my own about who that could be. Don’t expect me to play along.”

  “That sounds like a threat. I think you should remember who you’re talking about.”

  “And I think you should remember why he’s in this house right now. We all know he wouldn’t be here if it hadn’t been for my daughter. If you think for one second that I’ll let him use her in death the same way he did in life, you’re completely mistaken. You know what? I don’t think I need to talk to Zack at all. You’ve always had his…ear. You tell him that if he doesn’t deny this story, I’ll release one of my own, and he won’t like it.”

  Paul turned and stormed out of her office.

  She leapt from her chair and headed straight for the Oval. As much as she hated to, she had to tell Zack about Paul’s visit.

  Ahead of her, the man’s long, angry strides took him not toward the exit, but in a completely different direction. She followed, her every instinct flaring as he marched to the residential wing.